Vecrīga ("Old Riga") is the historical center and a neighbourhood (as Vecpilsēta) of
Riga
Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...
, Latvia, located in the
Central District on the east side of
Daugava River. Vecrīga is famous for its old churches and cathedrals, such as
Riga Cathedral,
St. James's Cathedral and
St. Peter's Church.
History
Vecrīga is the original area of Riga and consists of the historic city limits before the city was greatly expanded in the late 19th century. Vecrīga was once protected by a surrounding wall, except the side adjacent to the Daugava river bank. When the wall was demolished, the waters from Daugava were diverted into area of the former wall, creating Riga City Canal.
Heritage
In the early 1990s, Vecrīga's streets were closed to traffic and only residents of the area and the local delivery vehicles were allowed within Vecrīga's limits with special permits. Vecrīga is part of a
UNESCO World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
listed as "Historic Centre of Riga", which also includes most of the surrounding
Centrs district.
Vecrīga is the oldest part of the Riga, and—even though in its primordial state most of the buildings were made of wood—currently, there are a lot of architectural works remaining from the times of
renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
,
baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
and
medieval times in the middle of the unique and notable buildings in the style of
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
, especially the ones created by the locally and internationally well-known architect
Mikhail Eisenstein.
Landmarks
Churches
*
Church of St. Peter
*
Dome Cathedral
*
Cathedral of Saint James
*
Church of Saint John
*
Church of Our Lady of Sorrows
*
Anglican Church
Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
* Reformed Church
*
Church of Mary Magdalene
Museums
*
Military Museum
*
Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation
* Sports Museum
*
Latvian Museum of Pharmacy
*
Latvian Museum of Photography
*
Riga castle
*
Latvian Museum of National History
*
Art Museum Riga Bourse
*
Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts
*
Museum of the Occupation of Latvia
*
Latvian Museum of Architecture
*
Riga Film Museum
*
Museum of the Popular Front
Gallery
File:Riga map around 1637.jpg, The original boundaries of the Old Riga in 1637
File:Riga johanneskirche 133731389.jpg, St. John's Church, Riga
File:Plaza del Ayuntamiento, Riga, Letonia, 2012-08-07, DD 10.JPG, The House of the Blackheads and Roland statue
File:Barracas de Jacob, Riga, Letonia, 2012-08-07, DD 01.JPG, Reconstructed section of the medieval city wall
File:Riga Landmarks 62.jpg, Riga Castle in Vecrīga
File:Old Riga Vecrīga Town Hall.jpg, Riga Town Hall in Vecrīga
File:Výhled na Rigu (9).jpg, Aerial view of the Town Hall Square
File:Historic Centre of Riga-112610.jpg, View of Vanšu Bridge
File:La rue Alberta (Riga) (7581842090).jpg, Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
buildings at Albert Street.
See also
*
Triangula Bastion
References
External links
*
Multimedia virtual tour of Old Riga
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vecriga
Neighbourhoods in Riga
World Heritage Sites in Latvia